May: Blueberry Cornmeal Galette

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Welcome summer with the brightest blueberry galette you’ll ever taste. Our tender galette crust is courtesy of Bob’s Red Mill Organic All-Purpose Flour and the delightfully crunchy Bob’s Red Mill Medium Grind Cornmeal. Complete with a juicy Blueberry Filling, this rustic galette will be the stunning conclusion to any dinner. We’ll show you two ways to make the galette dough, by hand and using a food processor, as well as how to transform one large galette into two smaller ones. From filling to folding to baking, we’ll help you create the perfect Blueberry Cornmeal Galette you can enjoy all summer long. Click here to download a printable PDF of this lesson, or keep scrolling to view our digital lesson.

Before you get to baking, don’t miss our Editor-in-chief’s video demonstration of this recipe over on our IGTV! Michele Song, the baker and blogger behind the blog Studio Baked, created savory twist on this recipe, which you can find here. You can also listen to Michele talk all things galettes on our podcast, The Crumb.

Ingredient Breakdown

Great recipes require great ingredients. Here’s how each one helps pull together a crunchy, buttery galette with a swoon-worthy Blueberry Filling.

DOUGH:

BOB’S RED MILL ORGANIC ALL-PURPOSE FLOUR: This versatile all-purpose wheat flour has a protein content of 10% to 12%. It’s a vital baking ingredient that provides structure, absorbs liquid, and adds color, flavor, and nutritional value. All-purpose flour has just enough gluten to hold the dough together and give it elasticity for rolling. Bread flour has too much gluten and would produce a tough dough, and cake flour has too little, which would make the dough crack and crumble.

BOB’S RED MILL MEDIUM GRIND CORNMEAL: Cornmeal is dried yellow, white, or blue corn kernels that are ground into fine, medium, or coarse texture. For our crunchy galette crust, we use Bob’s Red Mill Medium Grind Cornmeal. Bob’s grinds 100% whoe-grain organic corn to create a lightly textured meal perfect for cornbread, Dutch oven bread, pizza crust, and more. Unlike degerminated cornmeal, Bob’s cornmeal contains the vital nutrients of the corn germ and endosperm. The cornmeal provides our crust with flavor, crunchy texture, and color.

GRANULATED SUGAR: While it adds a nice slight sweetness, sugar also enriches the dough. Plus, during baking, the sugar caramelizes slightly, giving the dough a nice golden color.

KOSHER SALT: Salt enhances the flavor of the dough and also helps soften the crust by slowing the development of gluten.

UNSALTED BUTTER: For pie or galette dough, you can use butter, lard, or shortening as your base fat, with each having their pros and cons. For the best- tasting galette, we opt for butter because it provides rich, excellent milkfat flavor. Butter does have a low melting point, so when pulling your dough together, it’s essential to make sure your butter is very cold and that you handle it no more than needed.

WHOLE MILK: When making your crust, a cold liquid is key to helping the gluten in the flour develop properly. Water is frequently used, but we use milk because it enriches the dough and helps add color to the crust. The extra fat and sugar in milk help tenderize the crust as well. It should be ice-cold to help preserve the solid state of the butter.

FILLING:

GRANULATED SUGAR: For our filling, sugar provides sweetness and enhances flavor. Once we heat the sugar and the water over high heat, it becomes hygroscopic, which means it can hold and retain moisture. This also helps thicken the filling.

KOSHER SALT: We bake with kosher salt because, unlike most commercial salt, it doesn’t contain iodine, making it taste purer and more palatable. Also, the salt crystals are larger. Table salt is much finer, so you would use half of what a recipe with kosher salt calls for.

CORNSTARCH: A powdered starch derived from finely ground cornmeal, cornstarch is used to thicken fillings, jams, and custard. It is best to mix cornstarch with a liquid before cooking to prevent it from clumping. It also needs to be fully cooked to make sure it does not leave a starchy taste.

WATER: A liquid is needed to help make a cornstarch slurry that won’t clump during the cooking process. In this case, the liquid is water. We use just enough to help pull together the sugar, salt, and cornstarch into a uniform mixture.

FRESH BLUEBERRIES: These small, juicy berries are available year-round but are in peak season during the summer. At this time, the sweet flavor is unrivaled, so we’ve made the most of the season by making them the star of our galette filling.

UNSALTED BUTTER: A touch of butter provides a boost of rich flavor to the filling.

FRESH LEMON JUICE: Acidic lemon juice helps enhance the overall blueberry flavor and adds a slight brightness to the filling.

This is the easy, breezy summer recipe your fresh berries are destined for.
A jammy Blueberry Filling meets its perfect complement with our buttery, crunchy galette crust, a combination of all-purpose flour and toothsome cornmeal. For a final touch of berry goodness, we topped our baked galette with fresh blueberries, driving home summer’s sweet bounty.

5.0 from 1 reviews
Blueberry Cornmeal Galette
 
Makes 1 (11-inch) galette
Ingredients
  • 1½ cups (188 grams) Bob’s Red Mill Organic All-Purpose Flour
  • ⅓ cup (51 grams) Bob’s Red Mill Medium Grind Cornmeal
  • 1 tablespoon (12 grams) granulated sugar
  • 1¾ teaspoons (5.25 grams) kosher salt
  • ¾ cup (170 grams) cold unsalted butter, cubed
  • ¼ cup (60 grams) cold whole milk
  • Blueberry Filling (recipe follows)
  • 1 large egg (50 grams), lightly beaten
  • 1 tablespoon (12 grams) sparkling sugar
  • ½ cup (74 grams) fresh blueberries
  • Vanilla ice cream, to serve
Instructions
  1. In the work bowl of a food processor, place flour, cornmeal, granulated sugar, and salt; pulse until combined. Add cold butter, and pulse until mixture is crumbly and butter is pea-size. With processor running, pour cold milk through food chute in a slow, steady stream just until dough comes together. (See Note.) Turn out dough, and shape into a disk. (Dough will be wet.) Wrap in plastic wrap, and refrigerate for at least 1 hour or up to 3 days, or freeze for up to 3 months (see Freeze It!). (If dough is too stiff to roll out, let stand at room temperature for 10 to 15 minutes).
  2. Preheat oven to 375°F (190°C). Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
  3. On a heavily floured surface, using a floured rolling pin, roll dough into a 13-inch circle (about 3/16 inch thick). Place dough on prepared pan. Spoon Blueberry Filling onto dough, leaving a 2-inch border around edges. Fold edges over Blueberry Filling. Brush egg wash onto crust, and sprinkle with sparkling sugar.
  4. Bake until crust is golden, 25 to 30 minutes. Let cool on pan for 10 minutes. Top with blueberries, and serve warm or at room temperature with ice cream.
Notes
Alternately, in a medium bowl, sift or whisk together flour, cornmeal, granulated sugar, and salt. Using your fingers, cut in cold butter until mixture resembles coarse crumbs and butter is pea-size. Make a well in center, and add cold milk. Stir with fingers just until dry ingredients are moistened. Turn out dough, and shape into a disk. Wrap in plastic wrap, and refrigerate for at least 1 hour.

5.0 from 1 reviews
Blueberry Filling
 
Makes about 2 cups
Ingredients
  • ⅓ cup (67 grams) granulated sugar
  • 3 tablespoons (45 grams) water
  • 4 teaspoons (12 grams) cornstarch
  • ¼ teaspoon kosher salt
  • 3 cups (444 grams) fresh blueberries, divided
  • 1 tablespoon (14 grams) unsalted butter
  • 1 tablespoon (15 grams) fresh lemon juice
Instructions
  1. In a small saucepan, whisk together sugar, 3 tablespoons (45 grams) water, cornstarch, and salt until smooth. Stir in 1½ cups (222 grams) blueberries, and bring to a boil over medium heat. (Berries should burst, and mixture will become dark purple-blue.) Cook, stirring constantly, for 2 minutes. Remove from heat, and stir in butter, lemon juice, and remaining 1½ cups (222 grams) blueberries. Let cool completely before using.

 

MAKE YOUR DOUGH: FOOD PROCESSOR METHOD

The first method for forming your dough is made quick and easy thanks to your trusty food processor.

1. In the work bowl of a food processor, place flour, cornmeal, granulated sugar, and salt; pulse until combined. Processing the dry ingredients together works much the same as sifting the ingredients, blending them together properly with just a few pulses.

2. Add cold butter, and pulse until mixture is crumbly and butter is pea-size. At this point, the mixture should have little lumps of cold butter. Be careful not to overprocess the mixture, as these whole pieces of butter will create flaky layers when the dough is baked.

3. With processor running, pour cold milk through food chute in a slow, steady stream just until dough comes together. This will be a quick blending period, with the dough almost immediately clumping together as you pour. Turn off your processor as soon as the dough forms to keep from overworking the dough.

4. Turn out dough, and shape into a disk. Wrap in plastic wrap, and refrigerate for at least1 hour or up to 3 days. Chilling the dough allows the gluten to relax. It also enables the flour and butter to firm up, making it easier to handle and roll out.

MAKE YOUR DOUGH: BY-HAND METHOD

The second way you can make your galette dough? Use your hands!

1. In a medium bowl, sift or whisk together flour, cornmeal, granulated sugar, and salt. Because the cornmeal, sugar, and salt are coarser than the flour, a quick sifting or whisking together helps ensure they are all properly blended together before mixing with butter and milk.

2. Using your fingers, cut in cold butter until mixture resembles coarse crumbs and butter is pea-size. Start turning the mixture over with both hands in a snapping motion using all of your fingertips. It’s best to be working with cold hands; if your hands warm up, dunk them in ice water. Snap until your pieces of butter are about pea-size and butter is equally covered in flour.

3. Make a well in center, and add cold milk. Recipes that are sensitive to overmixing, like our tender galette dough, require you to make a flour well. This allows you to mix the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients in a uniform matter.

4. Stir with fingers just until dry ingredients are moistened. Working from the center to the outside of the bowl, use your fingers to combine the wet and dry ingredients. This means minimal risk of overworking your dough.

5. Turn out dough, and shape into a disk. Wrap in plastic wrap, and refrigerate for at least 1 hour or up to 3 days. Chilling the dough allows the gluten to relax. It also enables the flour and butter to firm up, making it easier to handle and roll out.

FREEZE IT: Your galette dough also freezes well! Wrap tightly in plastic wrap, seal in a resealable plastic bag, and store in the freezer for up to 3 months. Thaw in the refrigerator overnight before using.

PREPARE YOUR FILLING

Follow these steps to make a quick, jammy Blueberry Filling.

1. In a small saucepan, whisk together sugar, 3 tablespoons (45 grams) water, cornstarch, and salt until smooth. Cornstarch must be whisked in with the water before cooking so it won’t clump up once heated. Make sure to whisk everything together before you even touch that stove dial.

2. Stir in 1½ cups (222 grams) blueberries, and bring to a boil over medium heat. Cook, stirring constantly, for 2 minutes. This half of the blueberries will become the jammy heart of the filling, bursting and turning deep purple-blue as you heat it. It’s important to stir constantly while cooking to make sure the filling doesn’t burn and the cornstarch is properly incorporated.

3. Remove from heat, and stir in butter, lemon juice, and remaining 1½ cups (222 grams) blueberries. We add the lemon juice at the very end so it doesn’t inhibit the congealing powers of cornstarch but still offers a bright finish. The last bit of blueberries will keep their juicy shape, offering another level of texture to the filling.

4. Let cool completely before using. As your filling cools down, it’ll continue to set. Cooking the filling before baking allows it to stay in place once spooned onto the dough. Plus, when you bake your galette, you can pull it from the oven when the crust is ready without having to worry about whether your filling is done or not.

FILL, FOLD, AND BAKE

You’re only a couple of quick folds away from a perfect rustic galette.

1. On a heavily floured surface, using a floured rolling pin, roll dough into a 13-inch circle (about 3/16 inch thick). You don’t want your tender dough to stick at all when rolling out, or it’ll be difficult to transport to your prepared pan. So, keep your surface and rolling pin nicely floured.

2. Place dough on prepared pan. Spoon Blueberry Filling onto dough, leaving a 2-inch border around edges. It’s crucial that you move your dough to the prepared pan before filling, or you’ll have a mess on your hands transporting a filled galette to its final destination. For clean pleats, the border is important.

3. Fold edges over Blueberry Filling. For our photos, we folded over 9 segments, about 4½ inches long each. But there’s no need to be precise. The beauty of the galette is its rustic imperfection.

4. Brush egg wash onto crust, and sprinkle with sparkling sugar. The egg wash will give your final baked crust shine and color while the sparkling sugar adds an element of sweet, satisfying crunch.

5. Bake until crust is golden, 25 to 30 minutes. Let cool on pan for 10 minutes. Top with blueberries, and serve warm or at room temperature with ice cream. We finish our baked galette with another dose of fresh blueberries to bring the summer sweetness right to the forefront.

Galette: A French Classic

The galette hails from the land of fabulous pastry, France. Deriving from the Norman word gale, which means “flat cake,” the galette’s earliest ancestors first popped up in the 11th century. In Brittany, France, the galette took a savory form as a buckwheat pancake folded around a cheesy filling. The free-from tart incarnation really hit its stride in the 19th century, becoming a favorite way for the French to celebrate seasonal produce. Now, it’s an international sensation and still a great way to make use of the season’s best berries.

Make It Small Batch!

This large galette can also be transformed into two petite ones. Here’s how.

1. Divide your galette dough in half. Both portions can be used immediately, or one portion can be frozen for future use. (See Freeze It.)

2. Divide filling in half. You can keep one half refrigerated in an airtight container for up to 1 week.

3. Preheat oven to 375°F (190°C). Line 2 baking pans with parchment paper.

4. On a heavily floured surface, using a floured rolling pin, roll 1 dough portion into a 9-inch round. Place on 1 prepared pan. Roll remaining dough into a 9-inch round, and place on remaining prepared pan. Spoon half of Blueberry FIlling onto 1 dough round, leaving a 2-inch border around edges. Fold edges over Blueberry Filling. Repeat procedure with remaining Blueberry Filling and remaining dough round. Brush egg onto crusts, and sprinkle with sparkling sugar. Bake until crust is golden, about 20 minutes. 

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7 COMMENTS

  1. I followed the recipe to the tee. I processed the dough by hand. I waited about an hour and a half before rolling out the dough. The dough was very hard at first but then as I continued to roll became softer. Then, the dough started to fall apart in places. I had a hard time getting it onto the pan. Could you please tell me what I did wrong. I sometimes have the same issues when I do a pie crust. It’s baking now and looks beautiful but wasn’t easy getting the dough to work properly.
    Thank you

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